Loyalty and Love
by EmilyEsmeGibson12
Summary: The Cullen's have ruled Camelot for centuries and Carlisle, the oldest of the four children of the leader Richard, is expected to marry soon. He must deal with his difficult sister Morgana, teach his younger brother Edward how to become a knight, make time for his little sister Rosalie, and find a wife.He finds himself falling for Esme, even though she is poor.Can they love survive
1. Chapter 1

My future was decided from the second I was born. I was to take over the throne when my father grew too old, to become the next king of Camelot, to lead the knights into battle and to help every single person in my kingdom. That had always been a future I was happy with, because it meant that I could make Camelot into an even more powerful and better place than it already was. I knew that the knights would give their lives to save mine, and I would do the same for them. I would treat everyone fairly.

But I still had a lot to learn. I was to watch my father every day and learn from him how to run and rule a kingdom as big as Camelot. I was getting ready to meet him, tucking into the breakfast my servant boy had brought me. It was warm chicken soup, unusual for a lunch choice, but because of the cold weather the cook of the castle had decided it would be better to give the knights and royal family soup to warm them up.

"Here are your clothes, sir." The servant girl, Felicity, said as she folded my clothes for me. She was a nice girl and had been working for my sister, Morgana, for two years now. She always wore her blonde hair back in a braid that went down to her waist and even though she had a lot to do, she was always smiling. "The Lady Morgana would like to speak to you as soon as you can." She added.

I nodded. "Thank you, Felicity," I said and she gave me a little smile before she left the room. I dropped my knife and fork on the fork on the plate and got up, slipping out of my t-shirt and changing into the freshly cleaned one and then changed into the trousers she had washed for me. My hair was its usual scruffy mess on the top of my head and I left the room.

I knew my way around the castle pretty well. I hadn't always grown up here, I had lived with my aunty in their house in the village for a while when the castle was infected with an illness that had affected my mother and father, making them too ill to care for me and my siblings. I headed right, down the stone corridor, my footsteps echoing through the castle. Everything was quiet inside, but outside I could hear the slashing of swords as the knights trained. I would join them later after I spoke with my sister and father.

Morgana's room was at the other side of the castle, as she preferred the view of the mountains and forest from that side. She had requested that would be her room, it had once just been a spare one covered in dust and cobwebs, but soon it had been transformed into a room fit for the princess of Camelot. I nodded to the knights that were guarding her room and knocked on the door.

"Come in," Morgana called and I opened the door. She was sat on the stool in front of her mirror, brushing her long black hair. Her dark eyes saw me in the reflction and stayed there. "Why hello brother, to what do I owe this pleasure?" She asked, her voice filled with faked warmness. Morgana and I never really got along, we usually teased each other and joked around, always knowing how to wind the other one up.

"Felicity said you needed to speak with me," I told her, staying where I was by the door. She usually snapped at me if I sat down on her bed to listen to what she had to say - Morgana, unlike me and the rest of our siblings, made her own bed and was always proud of the fact she didn't rely completetly on servants, but I knew without Felicity she would be lost.

She turned around in the stool so she was facing me. As she spoke she tied her hair back in a ponytail. "Yes, it's about the...exucution that will be taking place this evening. I wanted to know what you feel about it."

Today a young child would be burned at the stake for being accused of having magic. "You know me Morgana, you know that I am never happy that a child is dying. But I cannot do anything about it."

"Coward!" She accused. "That poor boy has a family who love him. And now he is sentenced to death just because someone claims he has magic. We don't even know if that person is right or not, that we are killing someone with magic, or just an innocent little boy. What harm can he do?"

"I know how you feel, Morgana, I am not comfortable with this. But magic has always been a great threat to this kingdom, the rules are something I cannot change, because I am not King. I must follow them like everyone else in this kingdom must."

"But one day you will be King. Father will not live forever, you know that as well as I do, as well as anyone knows it. When you become King, will you change these ways? Will magic finally be welcomed in Camelot?"

I sighed. "Since magic has been banned from Camelot, there have been less accidents and deaths. We know that people will magic will do anything to get revenge on us, so we must always watch our backs."

"That was because Uther banished them. Well the Pendragon reign is over now, who is to say the rules cannot be over as well? Why are you so against people with magic, Carlisle?"

"Why are you so eager to allow magic back, Morgana?" I shot back. "I knew that you talking to the village people would have changed your mind on magic. You used to fear it."

"Before I knew that not everyone with magic is evil." She snapped. "And they are not 'village people' they are my friends."

I rolled my eyes at her. "I'm not going to spend my whole morning arguing with you when it is pointless. Magic has no place in Camelot, it never has and it never will. Now, I'm going to go speak with Father. Goodbye, Morgana." She just pulled a face at me and then turned to look at herself in the mirror again. I rolled my eyes and left the room, heading towards the hall was, where my father would be waiting.

I didn't know why Morgana had brought up the subject of magic, but part of me wondered if it was something to do with the people she spoke to. Morgana was friendly with a group of village people who were a few years younger than her. Did one of them have magic? If my father found out, they would be questioned and then killed without a second thought. I wouldn't tell him about my suspicion though, in case I was wrong.

My father was sat on his throne with my mother by his side. As always they were dressed in rich clothing and wore jewels and their crowns. My mother, Elizabeth, beamed warmly at me as I walked forward. At her feet was my youngest sibling, my little sister Rosalie, who was having her blonde hair platted by our mother. She gave me a little wave before concentrating on the doll she was playing with. She was only eleven years old. My brother, Edward, was stood by my mothers side, he gave me a dip of his head. He was fifteen and was training to become a knight of Camelot - of course my father would allow him to become one as soon as he turned seventeen, that was the youngest a knight could be.

"Carlisle, there you are." My father, Richard Cullen, said as I stood in front of him. "Are you planning on training this morning?"

I nodded. "Yes, Father." My mother's face shone with pride. I was a knight of Camelot and she was always happy when she was reminded of that. Her smile would grow even wider, if that were possible, when Edward became a knight. "Morgana, I think, will be training as well." Morgana wanted to be a knight as well, but I was unsure whether she would be allowed to. Because she was the kings daughter, maybe she would be allowed to, but there had never been a female knight before. Morgana was a skillful fighter though.

"May I ask of you to take young Edward along with you?" My father asked, although it was more of a demand than a request, as usual. I nodded. "Very good. I want you both back in time to watch the execution."

I dipped my head and Edward walked over to my side. We left the hall and went down towards the room where all the armor and swords were kept. Edward was buzzing with excitement although he was trying to hide it, as he got nto the armor and went for his sword. "I will beat you today," He promised me, practicing a few of his moves as he waited for me.

"You can try," I said before we headed out of the room and outside. The sun was bright in the sky, there wasn't a single cloud, and my knights were training hard on the grass.

Edward and I practiced on our skills on each other. He was fast, I would give him that, but I soon had him lying on the ground. I placed my foot on his chest, holding him to the ground so he couldn't give up. He sighed in defeat, he was a gracious loser, never making a big deal out of it. I knew that when he fought in his fight battle hw would fight with the courage and strength of a lion.

Training went on for a few hours. Morgana joined us and fought against Edward and the knights, staying clear of me. She hadn't gotten over her last defeat and wasn't willing to try to beat me again until she had practiced. My knights were fine fighters, strong and brave, and always served me well in battles. I had only led them into two battles before, and they had shown me how much they were willing to lay down their lives for me. I would use up my life to save any one of there's as well.

Morgana looked up at the sky and a look of sadness crossed her face. It was time for the execution. The three of us headed back into the room where we got out of the armor and then went up to the balcony where we would stand with our father and mother. Rosalie was inside, she was too young to watch this, and I knew she was with Felicity and the other servant girl, Maria, laughing and completely unaware of what was happening.

I watched with sadness as the knights dragged the child forward to the stand. He was a young boy of about ten years old, slightly younger than Rosalie, and he had curly blonde hair and rosy cheeks. His green eyes were wide with fright as he looked around and he was shaking. I heard the whimper escape from his lips and felt pity towards the boy.

"Citizens of Camelot," My fathers voice rang through the square, echoing off the walls. "We are hear today to watch this little boy, who was accused of magic yesterday morning, burn. Magic has no place in our kingdom, and for your safety, the boy must die."

My eyes glanced over to a corner of the clearing where three knights were. Each one of them were holding back woman who were struggling in their grip to get the boy. Two of them had long blonde hair and reminded me of an older Rosalie. The third one caught my attention. She was curvier than the other two, with long curly caramel hair and brown-hazel eyes. Her eyes then flashed golden, a risky move, and the flame on the wood one of the guards was holding died out. He went to fetch more flames and tripped on his way down the stairs.

I watched the girl with careful eyes. She had magic, it was clear, yet she couldn't do anything to help the young boy. The guard holding her slapped her across the cheek hard as she struggled in his grip. The guards were not like the knights, they weren't kind to everyone. The girl gasped but didn't stop struggling, a desperate look on her face as she watched the boy.

My father then dipped his head and the boy was pushed towards the stake, made to stand with his arms wrapped around the plank of wood sticking upright in the middle of the twigs and branches and tied to it with ropes. Then the guard returned and set alight to the stand. I looked away and focused on the caramel-haired girl again. Her lips parted and she let out a scream of pure rage, the flames reflecting in her eyes, which were brown again.

Everyone watched in silence as the boy burnt and I turned and left the balcony with one last glance at the girl. I made my way down the stairs but my mother called after me, "Where are you going, Carlisle?"

"I'm going for a ride, I need to clear my head." I said before leaving the castle and towards the stables. My horse, Scottiar, was in his stall and one of the stablehands quickly started to groom him and brush him. He was a dark bay pure-blood stallion and I led him out of the stable block when he was tacked up. Riding gave me a chance to clear my head.

I led him down the muddy track from the village. I got into the saddle and kicked him into a trot and we headed towards the exist to the city. Then suddenly he reared back as a dark shape launched itself across the path.

I managed to stay on, but I dismounted and held onto the reins, headings towards the shape that was cowering by the side of the round. It was a little girl with dimples and dark hair, in her arms was a wiggling kitten.

"I'm s-sorry sir," She whimpered. "Please don't hurt me!" She begged, moving an arm up to cover her face.

I dropped down to look at her in the eye. "I'm not going to hurt you, little oe. I'm the one who should be sorry, I didn't watch where I was going. Did you save this kitten?" I asked, looking down at the wiggling ball of black fur in her arms.

She gave a shy nod. "Yes, I didn't want it to get squished."

"You were very brave, you might have gotten hurt trying to save it.2 I said softly. "What's your name?"

"Grace sir. Are you Carlisle Cullen?" She asked, still shy.

I gave her a friendly smile. "Yes, I am. How about I take you home, Grace? It's going to get dark soon, and there will be more horses leaving and entering the kingdom soon. Come on, I'll help you up." I offered her my hand and she took it. I lifted her up and she brushed the dirt off her cloak. "Now, where do you live?"

"Just round the corner," She said and started walking towards where she had pointed. I followed her, Scottiar snorting in annoyance. I tied him up beside a water trough before continuing to follow the little girl.

Her house was nothing big, it was old and made out of wood, like the rest of the houses around here. This was the poor side of the kingdom. She tapped on the door lightly, shushing the kitten as it gave a yelp for attention.

The door swung upon and there stood the girl with the caramel-colored hair I had seen in the square. Her eyes were red and she was wiping away a tear. "Grace, there you are! We've been worried sick!" She cried, wrapping her arms around the little girl and hugging her tightly. "Where did you go?"

"Toby got loose," She explained, and I guess Toby was the cat. "I saved him though, a horse would have trodden on him."

"I'm glad he's safe, but you shouldn't have wondered off like that. I promised Mother I would take care of you, and then the second I leave the house for a minute your gone!" Then her eyes fell on me. "You!" She hissed. Yep, she had seen me on the balcony, or many my clothes had given me away.

"Don't be so mean to him, he's been very kind to me." Grace told her, looking up at me and smiling. "His name is Carlisle Cullen, he's the prince!"

"Yes, I know very well who he is." She said, letting go of her. "Why don't you go inside, Grace? I'll join you in a minute." The little girl nodded and threw me a goodbye smile over her shoulder before entering into the dark house. The older girl crossed her arms and looked at me. "Were you riding the horse?"

I nodded. "Yes, I'm sorry about that, I should have been watching where I was going."

"Too right you should have, you could have killed my sister, or the cat, and that would have killed Grace as well."

"I'm sorry," I repeated, a little taken aback by her harsh tone.

She sighed. "I'm sorry your highness, it's just been a very long day for me. You should know, you were there. You stood by your father while my little brother died! Did you enjoy the show?"

My eyes widened in shock. "Of course not, I would never have allowed him to die, but my father is the king."

"Well, thank you for making sure my sister got home safety. She is all I have now. Well I have my cousins, but still."

"No problem. Before I leave, may I know your name? It must be a beautiful one, because you yourself look beautiful."

She wiped her cheek to get rid of another tear which had fallen in her anger, and I smiled a little in amusement as she smeered a streak of mud across her cheek when she did this.

"It's Esme,"


	2. Chapter 2

We were all sat at in grand dining room, plates stacked with food in front of us and classes filled with wine, and water for Edward and Rosalie of course. I chewed on a mouthful of turkey and potatoes, not really tasting it. All I could think about was the poor people in that corner of the kingdom, the bad conditions they lived in, their clothes that were covered in mud. I remembered fondly of when Esme created a line of mud across her cheek the day before, but my smile faded when I remembered the conditions she lived in.

But I was the prince of Camelot, I could do something about it, or try to anyway. "Father?" I asked. He looked up from his plate and his eyes narrowed with suspicion. I carried on talking before he could tell me to finish eating. "I was wondering...we have so much food here in the castle, so much more than we need, we barely finish all of it at one eating. Shouldn't we give some to the west side of the kingdom? To the poorer citizens of the kingdom, I mean."

Morgana looked up, startled. Her friends came from the west side of the kingdom and she glanced at our father hopefully. Richard seemed to be deep in thought, rubbing his chin like he always did when he was thinking. "What brought this on, Carlisle? You've never taken much notice of them before." That made me sound as if I didn't care. Morgana then looked at me, puzzled.

"I have always noticed them, but I never knew they lived in such bad conditions until yesterday. I was going out for a ride and I took the pathway to the west exist. A little girl threw herself across the road to save her kitten, so I took her back home. Their house was very old and looked as if the smallest breeze could knock it over, and her clothes and face were covered in mud and dust."

My mother gasped, her eyes widening. "Is the little girl OK? She was very brave, risking herself for a kitten." I nodded in agreement and then looked back at my father, who was still thinking about this.

"Well, I don't see why we couldn't possibly refuse to give them food. We do have a lot here...alright then, I'll send the knights down tomorrow with a wagon of food for them, and then they can share it out equally with every house. How about that?"

I nodded, glad that he had agreed. "I'll go with the knights." I wanted a chance to see Esme again, and maybe if she saw me doing something good, she would be a little more friendly towards me. Of course I didn't blame her, I had stood by and watched her father die because I hadn't talked to my father about it, but it would be nice to see her looking at me with eyes filled with warmth and not hostility,

"Oh, and I want you to lead a patrol out to the east border line. The Meditera knights seem to be hovering around there. They warned us about magic being used there, they suspect witches and warlock are gathering there. I want you to lead the knights there tomorrow evening after you have taken the food and drive them out."

"Will swords be necessary " I asked him, it really meant 'will we have to kill anyone?'. If you wanted to charge someone out, a line of horses galloping at full speed towards them would do the trick. Besides swords wouldn't be that usual if you were facing magical beings...neither would horses...

He nodded. "Of course. Don't do anything risk, I just want you to see if what the knights of Meditera are saying is true. Don't fight them, you won't be taking that many knights."

I dipped my head. "I'll leave as soon as we have given the food to the west side of the kingdom." I promised. I wasn't scared of the thought of running into people with magic, I just wanted to get it over with. Morgana looked uncomfortable as my father talked of ways to wipe out the magic group who were meeting up in the forest apparently.

I sighed and just looked at my bowl. Then I excused myself and left the hall. I wasn't hungry at all.

* * *

The knights were confused about the kings order for them to bring food to the poorest in the kingdom, but they didn't argue and soon we were outside the houses with lines of people who were hear to collect food. Every house was to get eggs, bread, milk, fruit and vegetables and enough food and drink for them to survive the week at least, maybe loner, it depended how well they rationed it.

Grace was sat on a barrel with Toby in her arms. Her sister or their cousins - I had guessed the cousins had been the two blondes who had also been held back by guards in the square - and I tried not to be disappointed that I hadn't seen or talked to Esme. I walked over to Grace and she looked up with frightened eyes when she heard me approach. When she saw it was me though she relaxed.

"Hello, Grace." I said and she gave me a little smile before looking down at the purring cat in her arms. "Where is your sister?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, she was gone when I woke up, she left a note, but it told me to not leave the house and that she would be back soon before lunch time. I think she went hunting."

"Hunting?" I repeated.

Grace nodded. "Yes, Esme goes hunting to get us some meat to eat. She normally brings back a deer or two. It's just because we can't afford to buy things from the market, but I prefer the animals she hunts, they are more fresh. And sometimes she finds some herbs like mint for us to have with the meat. We get the rest from the old lady a few houses down from ours."

I felt pity for this little girl and her family, who had to hunt for their own food instead of having it brought to them on a silver plate like I was. I had never felt so guilty. Was I selfish? Everyday I ate more than my fair share yet I never thought about the people who were poor and had no food, who went hungry everyday, while I ate. Well, if that was true, that was the old Carlisle, I would change from now on. Meeting Grace and Esme had changed me.

"Do you want me to take your share of the food and drink to your house?" I asked her and she gave me a little nod. Summoning another knight forward, I started to pick up the barrels containing the food and we carried it all into their house. The inside of their house seemed even smaller than it looked from outside. On the west wall were two beds, both small and both sticking out of the wall, one of them above the other. One was tidy, the other was a little messy. The ground was just mud. There was a small kitchen, well it was just a pile of twigs that was the fire and a pot on top of it on flat gray stone that would lit up and warm up when the twigs were set on fire. Behind the fire were buckets, some filled with water, some empty. That was all there was in that room, apart from a small wardrobe beside the bed.

"What are you doing in here?" A familiar, anger-filled voice came from behind me and I turned to see Esme stood in the doorway. Her eyes were narrowed as she looked at me. "Where's Grace? What did you do to her?" She was clearly worried that we had taken away her little sister like the guards had done with her little brother. I wondered what Esme must have felt like as she watched her little brother get taken away from her.

I remembered where I was and that she was waiting for an answer. "We were giving food to this part of the kingdom, and because you weren't here, my knight and I brought in the food and drink for you." I then realized my knight was not there. He had managed to get out before Esme caught him.

She remained furious for a moment, her hands on her hips, and then she sighed. "Well, if your giving us and our friends good, I guess I have to say thank you. Hunting is quite bad this season."

"Did you manage to catch anything?" I asked her. She nodded and disappeared, returning with two limp rabbits which hung from her hands, their tails inside her fists. "Good job," I commented.

She sniffed. "I don't like hunting animals, killing them, but I have to feed Grace. I can't let her go hungry. So I taught myself how to hunt and now I go out into the forest every morning to hunt for her. Normally if I returned with a poor amount, I would make sure she had most of it...sorry I'm babbling, you probably don't want to listen to me talking about my boring life."

"No, no, please, I don't mind. I'm sorry you live in this place, I'm trying to help you and your friends, my father agreed to giving you food, but I'll have to ask him when he's in a good mood to ask him to change your houses."

Her eyes flashed. "There is nothing wrong with this house!"

I took a step back from her, raising my hands so my palms faced her. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you."

Then she calmed down, sighing, her shoulders slumming. "No, I'm the one who should be sorry. Your the prince, I shouldn't be snapping at always told me that I spoke before thinking."

I gave her a friendly smile to let her know that I wasn't offended by her outburst. "I hope the food will be alright to keep you and little Grace fed for a week."

"Thank you, your highness, what you've done is really kind."

"Please, call me Carlisle, I insist." I said and she gave me a shy smile, reminding me of Grace so much. Dimples appeared on her cheeks when she smiled, it was adorable. I stopped myself then. "And its fine, the castle needed to get rid of some food anyway, and I thought about you and this place straight away," Well not straight away, I had been thinking about it carefully for hours, especially thinking about Esme.

"Carlisle," She whispered, looking stunned that I had allowed her to call me by my first name. People normally addressed me as 'your highness' or 'my prince' or something like that.

"Oh, I should probably warn you, the knights of Meditera have warned us that there is a group of magical humans meeting in the forest. You should watch out when you are out hunting." I warned her, but I wondered if this was not the first time she had been told. Was she part of it?

Her eyes flashed, and then she nodded. "I'll watch my back."

"I should get going," I said, glancing through the hole in the wooden roof. "I have to leave a patrol into the forest. I look forward to seeing you again, Esme." I said, taking her hand and laying a kiss on the back of it. I wanted my lips to touch her lips, but stopped myself. I looked up and she was blushing. I smiled and then walked out of the house, telling Grace that her sister was waiting for her inside.

I hadn't been lying, I actually was looking forward to seeing Esme again.


	3. Chapter 3

The horses hooves thundered on the leafy floor as we galloped through the forest towards the border. I was at the front flanked by Sir Lancelot and Sir Gwaine. Our red cloaks with the Camelot crest on it flew out behind us, waving in the wind, the material creating ripples. The wind was strong today, and the sky was covered in clouds, rain or snow would be on its way soon.

We left the horses in a clearing, tying them by their reins to the lower tree branches, and we left two knights with them. I led the rest of the knights through the forest, we had to slice our way through the undergrowth because the ferns and brambles were thicker in this part of the forest.

"What exactly are we looking for?" Sir Gwaine asked as he cut his way through the undergrowth, his eyes shining with the excitement of a chance of battle. He was our second strongest fighter, after Sir Emmett, who was more muscular than him and all of us.

"Anything that suggests magic. Something that doesn't look right, that isn't meant to be here. They might be practicing their spells on the forest." I said, my sword slicing through a vine so easily as if it was butter.

We fanned out through the forest, searching for such signs that would indicate magic being near. We listened as well, but it was hard to pick out anymore sounds than the undergrowth getting torn to pieces and our footsteps, the leaves crunching beneath our boots.

"What about this?" Sir Leon was stood beside a tree, his hand touching the bark of it. There was a sign cut into the bark. "I'm sure that nature didn't mark this tree with such a sign."

I nodded in agreement and made my way over to look at it, running my hand over the carved wood. The sign was shaped as a star, which had strange writing and symbols inside and outside it. I didn't know what the words meant, but I had come across this sign in books, it was the sign of great magic. "Good work, Sir Leon. We need to find more signs." He nodded and we went back to searching.

The sound of movement coming from ahead of us made us freeze. We then all took our swords in our hands and got ready. A dark shape was moving towards us. It was a girl in a black cloak, her black hair loosely hanging from around her neck. She stopped in front of us, chuckling, and undid the knot of the hood so we could see her face.

"Morgana!" I snapped.

She laughed at our startled expressions. "Hello, boys. You didn't think I would let you have all the fun, did you bother?" She asked me, titling her head to one side. It didn't make any sense, Morgana had been wanting to have magic brought to Camelot, yet she was willing to help us uncover a group of magical witches and warlocks. I was confused. She rolled her eyes. "Dark magic is the magic I am not welcomed to brother, and if these people practice it, I want to be part of the patrol that destroys them."

I sighed. I couldn't let her go back to the kingdom, because that was too dangerous, and I couldn't spare anymore of my knights. "Fine, you can stay, but don't be annoying."

She nodded, looking pleased that she could stay, and started to help us look for clues. I looked over my shoulder at her and I saw that she was crouched down, touching a flat grey stone.

"Morgana?" I asked as I approached her. She didn't look up, her eyes were closed, and she was as still as any human could be. Then her eyes blinked open. "Is everything OK?"

"Place your hand on the stone, Arthur, quickly, and close your eyes." She ordered and I dropped down, touching the stone with my hand and waiting. I closed my eyes and the sounds came to me. They were whispering, unclear, but they were voiced by humans speaking in a different tongue. I opened my eyes and the voices stopped. "What is this?"

"I've heard about them. They are called Whisper Stones, and they show where great magic is hold. Magic runs through this place, in every tree and bush, in every little animal and in every leaf, but the magic is strongest in the stones, because if you look carefully at the dark magic sign on the tree, you see the word Becilda, which translated means stone."

"How do you know this?" Sir Lancelot asked, he had been brought over by curiosity.

"My mother has a wide range of books, and I find myself growing bored sometimes, so I'll read a random book. Yesterday I just so happened to pick up one about magic, and the dark magic words and their means. They think of stones as the babies of the mountains, and mountains are strong and proud, everything the dark magic people think they are. The first people who learnt dark magic cast a spell on the stones of their areas of territory so people who wanted to join them knew where they were."

"How can we hear them though? We don't have magic." I kept my voice in a whisper so only Morgana could hear me. She shrugged, she didn't know, and she looked back at the rock. I raised my voice to include Lancelot as I continued speaking. "We're close, we should keep going and keep looking for signs. Lancelot, get the others to bring the horses." He nodded and disappeared.

Morgana and I waited for the others before we mounted the horses, Morgana was riding Lancelot's horse because he had offered to walk. We continued through the forest on the horses. I noticed that Morgana had not come unarmed, she had several knifes in her belt, all sharp and deadly, she was good at aiming. She also carried a bow over her shoulder along with a quiver of arrows that had been a gift from our parents for her last birthday. Although Morgana was skilled in sword and ax use, we all knew that she was more talented with aiming. She never missed.

Then we heard the noises that were not normal. They were growls and hisses. Dismounting the horses, we crouched down and I stalked forward, Lancelot and Morgana following me. I knew that Morgana would not listen to me when I told her to go back, so I kept quiet.

Two wolves were fighting in the clearing of the gorge below us. I think they were wolves, they were massive and moving so fast that they were just blurs. One was as grey as storm clouds and the other one was russet-red. Each were thick-furred with massive claws and deadly teeth. Another wolf was watching them, stretched out by the edge of the rocks. The third wolf had brown fur, it fur around its face and legs were darker than the rest. Her amber eyes had been fixed on the two fighting wolves, but then her nostrils flared and she looked up right at us. Her eyes widened and she jumped to her paws, raising her head and howling. The two wolves who were fighting jumped apart and the three wolves raced into the forest.

"After them!" I called and the knights kicked their horses into a canter and rushed down the path on the gorge to the clearing and shot off after the wolves. We couldn't risk having three giant wolves so near Camelot, for the young children and the livestock. Morgana and I hurried after them, Lancelot swinging onto the same horse as Morgana, sitting in the saddle with Morgana behind him, and lifting his sword out of its leather sheathe.

The knights were a little ahead of us, their horses galloping now. The wolves somehow managed to stay ahead of them, the length in their strides making it easier for them and their flat pads must help them fly over the soft ground.

Morgana took her bow and knocked the arrow in place as we took over the knights, the wolves just in front of us. She aimed it and it hit the brown wolf's flank. The wolf let out a howl of pain and shot off left. I followed it while the others went after the other two, it was just like hunting for stags with the hounds.

The wolf had vanished. I slowed the horse down to a trot, we splashed through the river and onto the other side of the bank and then just stopped there. I listened to the sounds of the forest.

Then I heard it. There was a sound of pain coming from just in front of me. I squeezed my leg and the horse moved forward. I didn't make the horse trot or canter, there was no rush for the injured creature couldn't go any further.

I got out of the saddle and tied the horse to a branch before pushing my way through the bushes. I gasped at what I saw.

Esme was there. What was she doing out here? She was lying on her side, one hand red and covering an area of the side of her stomach. She was panting, her eyes wide with pain, her clothes covered in blood.

"Esme?" I asked, dropping down beside her. "What happened?"

She looked up at me and started to back away, pushing herself back with her good hand and legs. I stood up, watching her cower in fear. "Esme, let me help you." I said softly. Then my eyes fell down to a shape in the grass. It was an arrow, which a blue feather attached to the end of it. It was Morgana's arrow.

Esme had been shot, right in the side of her stomach, or where a flank would have been if she was a wolf...no, it couldn't be. There was no way...but she had magic, she could easily change from her human form. And being a massive wolf would help with the hunting...

"Esme, what are you?"

She just looked up at me. Her eyes were brown again, and I could see that she had a scar running down her bare arm. Her clothes covered everything but her arms and legs, which I saw were covered in scars, bruises and cuts and scratches and...bite marks. Then she collapsed, her arm giving way. I rushed over to her side, placing my hand under her head and lifting it from the ground.

I picked her up in my arms and carried her back to where my horse was, lifting her into the saddle so she was siting in it and she slumped down, her hand dropping from the wound. It was deep and still oozing blood. I took some bandages from the saddle sack - we always brought this just in case we got hurt when we were riding alone - and wrapped it around her so it covered the wound again. I took the reins and led the horse forward, making sure that Esme was still on the saddle every now and then.

I didn't go to find my knights first, or my sister, the most important thing was getting Esme to the castle where our healer could look at her. All the way she whimpered and cried and I wanted to comfort her so badly, but that would only scare her. Her eyes were shut. It scared me so much when she fell silent, and I quickly looked to make sure she was still alive.

Our healer looked shocked when I carried the injured woman into his chambers, but he didn't argue and set to work cleaning the wound. "It's pretty deep. You said it was from a boar?"

I nodded, I had thought up this lie on the way back. If the others found out that she had been shot by an arrow, the knights would make connections with Esme and the wolf pretty quickly. Shape-shifters were things of legend here at Camelot, but that didn't mean they didn't exist, for witches and magic had been pure legend until a hundred years ago.

The healer went off to leave her to rest, but I stayed with her, holding her hand, worry and concern flooding through me. She opened her eyes after some hours had passed. "Where am I?" She asked, yawning.

"In the castle, in the healers chambers. You were shot when you were out in the forest, do you remember?" I asked her, keeping my voice gentle.

She looked thoughtful and then nodded. "Yes."

"Esme you've got to tell me the truth. What happened to you out there in the forest? Tell me your story, please." I wanted to hear her speak before I told her about the wolf and how I thought it was her, to see if she would lie to me.

"I was out hunting." She started. "And then I got hit by something."

"Esme, don't lie to me. I know what you are. I know you have magic, I know that when you hunt you do not use arrows or knifes, you transform into a massive brown wolf."

She gasped and then winced when she jolted backwards.

"Careful, the wound needs to heal. Lie still for me." I said and she lay back down, too weak to argue. It hurt me to see her like this, so weak and still, but it was for her own good that she remained lying down. "Now, tell me everything."

"Why should I?" She demanded.

"Because I know what you are. I know you have magic," I whispered. I watched her expression change to shock, then worry, and then pure anger.

"What are you going to do about that? Are you going to turn me into the king and watch me burn like you have watched so many of my kind burn? Are yo going to leave Grace with no one to care for?"

So it was true. And she was defending herself. What hurt me most was that she was scared of me and angry at the same time. "Do you really think I am capable of doing such an awful thing?" I asked her.

"Yes. Because if you weren't, you wouldn't stand by and let so many of my people, my friends, my friend, die right before you! You watch day after day as someone else is burned or beheaded, yet you do nothing. I know you don't like it, but if you were really against it you would do something about it!" She spat.

I swallowed. I told myself that every single day, but hearing someone else say it hurt even more. I shook my head, snapping myself out of it. Why did I care so much about what she thought of me?

"When you have healed, you'll go back home and look after your sister. If I were you, I wouldn't use magic so stupidly, around where people can see you. You wouldn't want Grace to be alone for the rest of her life, would you?" I knew it was cruel to say that.

She hissed, reminding me of the brown wolf. "You know nothing about magic!"

"I know that you use it to protect your sister. But I must ask, are you part of the group that practices dark magic?"

"I do not take any part in that group, how dare you accuse me of being so disloyal! I am not a witch!" She snarled, again reminding me of the brown wolf.

"Like I said, you can go home once your wound is healed, and you don't ever have to speak to me again, if you hate me so much." I said, although the thought of never speaking or seeing her again made me feel sad.

She sighed. "I need to rest, the sooner I go home the better."

I nodded and with a hollow feeling in my chest, I left Esme, the shape-shifter, to go to sleep.

* * *

**What do you think? Esme had magic, Carlisle found that out in the first chapter, but he didn't know what kind of magic he had. We'll find out about that in the next chapter. I hope no one minds that the wolves are part of this story, but the chapter didn't have any plot so I just wrote what came to mind at the time. I know that the wolves will play a big part in this. And no hate towards Esme in the reviews please, she isn't completely like the Esme in the Twilight saga.**


	4. Chapter 4

Esme didn't seem surprised that i was by her bed when she woke up. I had brought her some breakfast and water and she took one bite out of the food and one sip of water before she told me she was filled. "You need to eat," I encouraged her, but she just ignored me and the food and drink although.

"Why are you still here?" It wasn't a demand, there was no fury in her voice, but she still didn't trust me.

"I wanted to make sure you were OK." I told her and she just sighed and closed her eyes. She fell into deep sleep after just a few seconds and I just sat there watching her chest rise and fall slowly as she slept. When she woke up, it was lunch time. "How are you feeling?"

"Have you been there the whole time?"

I nodded. "Yes, I wanted to keep an eye on you. Our healer is out at the moment, so someone needed to watch you. Anyway, how are you feeling? Do you need anything?" I had gotten rid of the food, but kept the glass of water in case she got thirsty. "Water?"

She shook her head. "No. I have to say you surprised me, I didn't think you cared about me that much to waste your time watching me sleep."

"My time was not wasted, I made sure you were safe. Your very beautiful when you sleep." That last sentence slipped out of my mouth but I wished I hadn't said it. What if she got angry?

But she just sighed and gave me a little smile. "Thank you."

"Are you sure you don't need anything? I kept the water for you, just in case, and I can go down to the kitchen anytime and get you something eat. Or do you need more blankets? Our healer must keep them around here somewhere..." I trailed off, embarrassed. I was babbling.

Her smile hadn't faded though and a giggle escaped her lips. "You sound just like me whenever Grace is sick. I'm fine, but maybe another sip of water won't hurt."

She extended her hand out, reaching for the glass, but I stopped her by placing her hand by my own. "I'll get it for you," I said, taking the glass and passing it to her. She smiled gratefully and took another sip of water. I took the glass from her when she said she didn't want anymore and placed it back on the wooden table. "Why are you being so kind to me?" She asked. "I was so rude to you yesterday - was it yesterday? - and your the prince..."

I shushed her. "I wasn't mad at you, I think it's impossible for me to be mad at someone like you. I shouldn't have asked you to tell me the truth, why should you when you hardly know me?"

"You saved my life." She whispered, turning her head to look at me, her brown eyes melting into mine. "I would have bled to death in that forest, yet you saved me. And you didn't turn me into the knights to be burned and...oh!" Then suddenly, to my dismay, she started to cry, her sobs shaking her whole form.

"Esme? Esme! What's wrong?" I asked her, placing a hand on her shoulder and rubbing her skin with my thumb in a comforting way.

"Oh, Carlisle! I'm so selfish! Here I am, alive even though you know of my magic, but my brother and so many others died! I shouldn't be so lucky..."

"Esme, if I had known your brother back then, if I had met you, I would have stood up for him. And don't feel guilty when it wasn't your fault."

She looked up at me, her gaze softening. "You saved my life, you kept Grace from starving to death, you should know the truth, you deserve to know what I am. I am willing to tell you that." But she still looked unsure.

"I promise that what you tell me now will not be repeated to another soul." I vowed and she looked reassured by that.

She cleared her throat before starting her story.

"For nearly two hundred years my kind has lived out in the Shadow Forest, miles and miles away from Camelot, isolated from the safety of the kingdoms. They were left to defend themselves from the predators such as the great grizzly, they were forced to depend on our hunting abilities and the prey around the trees for our food, and they cannot remember ever talking to a human before. But over two hundred years, our kind have learnt the ways of the forest, the best hunting spaces at which time, how to make our own weapons, how to become one with our animal brothers, the tribe is stronger than it has ever been, but most importantly, we have learnt the true nature of the Kings and Queens of the kingdoms, to never trust them and to never listen to them again."

"We were loyal friends of the royal families at the beginning. They turned to our men to help their knights win battles, and we all know the reason behind that. Shape-shifters are powerful beings, we still are, they can transform into any animal as well as control the powerful magic the kings feared so much. With just one thought we can transform into any animal we wanted, from a wolf to a little rabbit. When the Kings first heard of us, they invited our ancestors to stay in the castle, only after a few weeks did they make a promise to our men; that if they fought in the wars with their knights, their families would be fed and sheltered."

"But soon the Kings started to doubt us and feared we would one day turn against them. They got it wrong, we aren't liars. When we make a promise we keep it. They decided that it was safer to banish us from the kingdoms, as well as kill half of our kind. They sentenced us to a live of exile, into this shadow forest. They thought we would die of starvation or thirst, or be picked off by bears, but they were wrong."

"We lived in the Shadow Forest, my mother and I, for three years before my mother decided she didn't want this life for me. We left and came back to Camelot, she married a blacksmith and had my brother and sister. We lived normal lives, hiding our magic from normal humans. My cousins and a few other members of our tribe came to join us, wanting this peaceful life as well. Sure we couldn't use our magic, but we felt much safer inside the walls of Camelot, instead of fearing for our lives everyday, instead of being hunted by knights."

I swallowed, fascinated as she told me the story that hadn't been recorded in any book I had ever heard of. "How old where you when you first used magic?"

"Although my kind are given our magic the moment we are born, it isn't safe to use it until we are ten years of age." She said. "I first turned into an animal when I was eleven, after I had gotten used to magic, and I found that even though I could transform into any animal in the world, I preferred to be a wolf, as I felt so free as one."

Then she started to cough and I gave her the glass of water.

"You should rest, Esme." I urged.

"You haven't heard all of my story yet," She argued.

I shook my head. "Your rest is more important. There is plenty of time for you to finish telling me this. But thank you for sharing it with me."


	5. Chapter 5

"Ow!" I complained as Morgana did up the belt a little too tight. "What was that for?" I asked, adjusting the belt so it was comfortable again. My sister was in a mood day, I could tell that easily, she was worse than normal.

"I think you've been eating too much, Carlisle. Are you sure you don't snack when you give the food to the poor people?" Morgana snapped as she placed my metal shoulder guard over my head and pulled it down so it made me wince. "Stop flinching!"

"It's kind of hard!" I retorted, glaring at her. Whatever was wrong with Morgana was making her short-tempered, arrogant and bossy, but not much had changed from her usual character. "What did I do wrong now?"

She flicked me, or more like whacked, me over the head with her hand. "You are so stupid Carlisle, it's hard to tell myself that we are brother and sister sometimes. Honestly," She huffed with annoyance.

"Can you just tell me why you are so mad?" I asked, although part of me didn't really want to find out the answer. Morgana had a lot of grumpy days, I was used to her storming around and complaining constantly.

"Two reasons," She said, sticking up two fingers, her eyes blazing. "Reason number one; you haven't even tried to look for those people practicing dark magic, all you do is go down to the healers chambers to see that girl, what's her name?"

"Esme,"

"That's it. And reason number two; Rosalie wanted to go on a ride with you yesterday, to spend some time with her big brother. But where were you? Oh yes, you were with Esme. What's so special about her Carlisle that you completely forget about your role as prince and your own family? Do you like her?"

"Of course I like her, but as a friend. Well I'm not even sure if we are friends are not."

She lifted her eyebrows. "That bugs you, doesn't it, that she doesn't completely trust you. Well you shouldn't care what she thinks about you, your the prince and she's just a poor girl."

Yes, she might be poor, but she's one of the sweetest, prettiest, compassionate girls with the warmest heart I have ever met. Oh, and she's a shape-shifter, so in truth she is even more powerful than me. I kept those thoughts to myself though. "Yes, it does bug me a little."

She groaned. "Your falling for her. Every second you spend with her you like her more and more. I can see it Carlisle, your always smiling and happy now, it was strange at first, and then I started to join the dots together. I can see that you like her. Whether she likes you I don't know, I don't talk to her, I barely notice her. Unlike you I am focused on Camelot and keeping it safe."

"Are you calling me a bad prince?"

"I think that as the future King of Camelot, you should start showing a little more responsibility for once and put all your attention on Camelot, not on some girl you just met!"

I sighed and with that, Morgana turned and left the room. I went to sit down on my bed, my head falling into my hands, my elbows resting on my legs. I sighed, knowing Morgana was right. If I was to rule Camelot one day, I would have to start taking more responsibility. I would have to find that group meeting in the forest and get rid of them, therefore keeping Camelot safe. Morgana wouldn't be able to doubt my loyalty to Camelot if I did that.

But was she right about what I felt for Esme? For me she was more than a friend, I wanted her to be more than just a friend to me one day, but that wasn't possible. Should I start not seeing her as often, make the separation sooner rather than later? Wait, who said she would be as affected by us not talking as I would sure be? I would have to speak to her, and then I would go out into the forest with my sister.

I left my room and went down the spiral staircase right to the bottom where the healers chambers was. The healer was reading one of his many books at his wooden desk that was covered in different bottles of a variety of color and paperweights that were insects or marbles, he looked over his shoulder at me and dipped his head. He was used to be coming into his chambers now to see Esme about three times a day over the past five days, so he didn't say anything and I went straight to the back room, up the stairs to where Esme was.

She was sitting up with her spine resting against the headboard of the bed, a book in her lap. She looked up at me and smiled that beautiful smile that created those adorable dimples on her face.

"Hello," She said, folding the top corner of the book to mark what page she was on. She placed the book on the small wooden table by her bed.

"Hello," I sat down on the stool next to the bed. "Are you OK?" I asked. She seemed better, her wound had cleaned nicely and was nearly healed, something the healer found surprising, but maybe shape-shifters healed quicker than humans.

She nodded, her eyes shining. "Yes. I just had some soup, it was lovely, just what I needed. Are you OK? You seem...distant."

"I just talked to Morgana, my sister. She believes that by spending time with you, I am not for-filling my role as prince of Camelot, which is complete nonsense, but its what she thinks."

Esme's eyes flashed with some kind of emotion that seemed like distress. "I've been keeping you from doing your job to the kingdom...she's right. I'm so sorry Carlisle if you've gotten in trouble with your father about this, or if you are going to be soon. If you want, you don't have to visit me so often, you can go back to your normal life."

I took her hand with mine and gave it a little squeeze. Five days ago she would have protested or snapped, now she just smiled a little. She was on the way to trusting me, which was nice to see. Too bad it was too late...or maybe not. "No, Morgana can do what she wants but she can't tell me what do to. If I choose to do something its because I really want to do it. I like talking to you Esme, I'm more myself around you."

The corners of her mouth twitched and a wider smile grew on her face, the dimples deepening. "Thank you. But seriously, I don't want to keep you from doing what you are supposed to do."

"I choose what I do, I have freedom. I want to talk to you every day, not go off listening to boring meetings with my father about whether the crops are growing well this year. Of course I care about Camelot, but I care-" I broke off, realizing what I was going to say.

Her eyes widened. "You care about me?"

I nodded, a little embarrassed. "Yes, very much, so much that I will do everything to make sure you and your sister lead good life's filled with freedom and hope. I don't want people with magic like you to be ashamed of who they are, to hide their true selves."

"What are you going to do about it?" She asked.

"I'm going to speak with my father."

* * *

"What the hell are you talking about!" My father bellowed, pacing in front of the window, shaking his head in rage. "Ar you seriously asking me if I would allow magic into Camelot again? If you are then here if my answer;no, no way, not in a million years will I ever agree to magic being allowed inside the walls of Camelot."

"But why not?" I asked, shocked at his reaction to my question. My mother wasn't here so there was no one to remind my father to stay calm and relax and not to shout.

"You can't trust magic, son. Those people would do anything to take over the thrown, they'll use their evil, twisted ways to destroy our family and take over. They. Cannot. Be. Trusted!"

"Not all magic is evil, father."

"Most of it is. Those with good magic are getting posioned with ideas as we speak. Poeple with dark magic won't stop until the Cullen family are dead. Do you want that son? Do you want our enemies so close that they would hurt your little siblings or Morgana, or your mother or me? I think not. Carlisle, I thought you had more sense. I thought you would see through their lies. What brought this on?"

"I was just wondering."

"Have you seen anyone with magic? If you have, tell me, they need to be burnt straight away." My father stopped pacing, his glare burning into mine.

I shook my head. "No,"

"Have you made any progress in finding those magical people meeting in the forest?"

"No, the incident with the wolves kind of stopped it."

"What wolves?"

Oh dear. I swallowed. "Oh, we were out hunting and these grey wolves were there, just enjoying the sun, but we killed them before they could become a threat to our livestock or children. They ran off and were hard to catch, but we spent the day chasing them and soon killed them before we returned." I lied. I think I'm getting the hang of this lying lark.

His eyes narrowed and then he nodded. "Well, I want you to lead a patrol out at sunrise tomorrow. I want you to find these people and kill them. Don't take any risks. Actually go at night."

"At night?" Riding at night had lots of risks.

He nodded. "Yes, hopefully they would be asleep and you could take them surprise. Carlisle, tell me that you will lead this patrol."

"Yes, father."

"For Camelot," He said.

"For Camelot," I echoed.

* * *

Esme looked shocked when I told her that I would be leaving at midnight tonight. "You can't! These people are powerful, Carlisle, I sensed their magic in the forest. You'll be killed!"

"Then I will die fighting for Camelot. Edward or Morgana would make great leaders of Camelot."

"When are you leaving?"

I looked out of the window. The sun was now sinking beyond the hills of the forest. "About an hour or two. I should get going. Make sure you have something to eat and drink plenty of water. Where is Grace staying?"

"With an old lady who gives us some food and clothes," Esme answered.

"She'll be living with you soon. Rest, Esme." I said before getting up off the stool and heading out of the door.

"Carlisle?" Her voice came from behind me and I turned around. She was walking over to me. Her hands cupped my face and she leaned up on her tiptoes to seal her lips to mind. My eyes widened at first and then closed as the kiss deepened, my tongue was allowed an entrance into her mouth, her hands moved up to curl around my neck and one ran through my hair. My own hands were placed lightly on her hips, holding her to me.

She broke the kiss off. "I...please come home, Carlisle."

"I promise," I said, kissing her lightly on the lips, enjoying the feeling, before I turned around and left.

* * *

**After this there will be about two or three more chapters left, one about the battle, the other two about how Esme and Carlisle's relationship was told to the kingdom, and then maybe an Epilogue!**


	6. Chapter 6

The sky was pitch black, with no stars and no moon. The only light we had to see by was the flame from the wooden torches we were carrying with one hand. The horses galloped forward towards the tents that were placed in a sandy clearing, a small fire burning outside them. The noises awoke the people sleeping and they rushed out. I squeezed my legs, willing the horse to go faster, and I raised my sword up, the knights doing the same. In the middle of the line of people was a woman with white hair streaked with a line of black. She raised her hand and her eyes sparked golden. Lancelot was thrown backwards out of the saddle, his horse continued forward, and I saw the knight hit the ground with a loud thud, his sword flying out to the right and landing in a log. This was easily going to be the most interesting battle I had ever fought in.

The kiss with Esme had gone through my head all the way here. She was the reason I had to survive this battle, I had to be with her again. After this I would tell my father that I'm in love with her and he'll have to live with that, or I would go move out of the kingdom with her and her little sister. I would do anything, even give my title to the throne to Morgana, if it meant I could be with Esme.

The knights lined at the top of the gorge pointed their bows down and fired the arrows, but a boy about fifteen years old looked up at them and they suddenly turned around and flew back at the guards.

My horse reared, its front legs lashing forwards, as the woman with the white hair moved forward towards us. All around me my knights were bravely trying to fight these magical beings, risking their lives to save those of the people of Camelot.

"Ah, Carlisle, it's been so long. You probably don't remember me." She chuckled. "My name is Seetha, I was once a great friend of your fathers. Until he turned on me. I was at your first birthday. I was your aunt Seetha back then, before your father became this horrible monster, turning on his own friends, killing them or driving them out with bad wounds."

"What do you want, Seetha?" I asked. I remembered who she was, I had a good memory. I was stood holding hands with my mother while my father stood from his chair and raised his glass, making a toast for me that the knights echoed. At my mothers other side was a woman about twenty years old with white hair and black eyes, who was quietly sat watching the king. Then the memory went to a burning of a teenage boy. Seetha had been by my fathers side, arguing with him. I hadn't heard what she was saying, but she had clearly been angry.

"I just want revenge on your father, and what better way than killing his son, the next ruler of Camelot? The son your father wanted so badly. Yes I know you have Edward, but everyone knows you are the strongest. You are destined to be a great king, Carlisle, but I'm not going to allow that to happen."

"If we are going to fight, let's make it far. No magic, you have a sword, I can see it, we will fight with swords, no cheating."

She rolled her eyes. "Of course."

We circled each other and then my arm darted forward. She blocked the blow with her own sword, moving it quickly to slice my side. The blade went right trough to the skin but I didn't gasp or wince, I threw another blow at her. She moved backwards, smiling as if she had already won, and I remembered that she had been the one to teach Morgana and I how to fight, not our father. But that didn't mean I couldn't win, because training with someone for a long period of time meant that you learnt their weaknesses as well as their strengths.

I aimed the next blow well, cutting her arm and making blood well up instantly and drip down her arm in little trickles, like rain running down a window. She snarled in anger and lunged at me. Then I was thrown backwards against the wall, my back smashing against it. "No...magic!" I snapped.

"I'm sorry, but I don't play by rules, I don't play fair you should have expected that." She said, moving over to me and placing her sword against my neck. "Say goodbye, Carlisle."

A growl split the air and the sword vanished from my neck and dropped to my side. I saw a flash of a knife shining silver in the moonlight and then brown fur. I got up. Esme, the wolf form of her, was pinning Seetha down to the ground. Seetha's hand jolted up and at the same time Esme bit down on her head and snapped it off before rolling over, a knife dug deep into her stomach.

I raced over and pulled the knife out of her, watching as the wolf twisted and turned until the fur began to leave and pale skin appeared. I took off my red cloak and wrapped it around her bare figure. "Esme?"

Her eyes fluttered upon at my voice. "Oh, Carlisle..."

"You saved my life." I whispered.

"I thought it was time I returned the favor. I couldn't lie around while you were fighting...it was...impossible." She choked out.

"Your highness!" Sir Leon called. "The others escaped, we're going after them now!" I nodded and he turned his horse and vanished into the forest with the knights behind him.

I caressed Esme's cheek with my hand. "It's all going to be OK, Esme. You'll survive this, your a fighter."

"And then what? What will happen next?"

"I will talk to my father. He can't stop my feelings for you. I...I love you."

She smiled up at me. "I love you too, Carlisle. Please, don't leave me."

"Never," I vowed.

Her eyes started to close slowly.


	7. Chapter 7

My father almost fell backwards in his throne when I told him about my feelings for Esme. He quietened down into a serious mode when he realized I was not kidding. Esme and I were stood in front of him, my mother and Morgana, her hand in mine. She looked terrified at being in front of the king and queen but I gave her hand a gentle, encouraging squeeze.

"You cannot be serious." My father snorted.

"I am serious, father. There is no magic or trickery involved in this before you ask. I love her with all my heart, and by some wonderful chance she loves me. I will not live without her."

"Carlisle, you barely know her."

"So? Didn't you and mother marry after just being with each other for three months? You are always telling me that I need to find a wife, someone to rule by my side when I am king. Esme will make a great queen."

His eyes widened. "Enough with the joking, son. She's a girl with no money, she cannot possibly become queen."

"It's not against the law, father. Just because it doesn't happen often doesn't mean it can't happen. We can't help who we fall in love with, but I'm glad Esme is the one for me. Can't you see that?"

My mother and Morgana exchanged a glance.

My father looked thoughtful. "Are you seriously asking me for my permission for you to marry this girl one day, or allow a peasant to become the next queen of Camelot?"

I shook my head. "Not for your permission, but for your blessing." His eyes narrowed even more at that. "Father, I want Esme to become my wife one day, to rule beside me, I know she will always be there for me and will make a great queen."

He looked at his wife. "What do you think?"

She stared at mine and Esme's hand and a warm smile appeared on her face. "I think that as long as Carlisle is happy, I am alright with whoever he marries. This girl is clearing special to him."

"And she saved his life," Morgana added, she was walking behind the thrones, looking carefully at Esme. "Without her, the withc Seetha would have killed your beloved son, father."

"Really?" The King asked. "Are you telling me this peasant risked her life for Carlisle's?"

"That was very brave of her," My mother praised. "Surely Richard we can give them our blessing. You said you wanted a strong leader for Camelot. With Esme, Carlisle will be even stronger than he already is."

My father sighed. "If she makes you happy son, then you have my blessing."

I dipped my head to them and led Esme out of the hall. Once the doors were closed I pressed her up against the wall and kissed her passionately. She weaved her fingers through my hair.

"They said yes!" She exclaimed when the kiss ended.

"Yes, they did." I said before kissing her again.

* * *

**Two years later**

Esme looked beautiful in the red silk dress that shaped her curves perfectly. Her caramel hair was styled up in a bun with a few strands hanging loose. She walked down the aisle created by the knights and joined me at the front. It had been a year since my father had passed away due to illness, and it was time for the corrugation of the new king and queen, the marking of a new beginning for Camelot.

So much had changed already. Shape-shifters were now welcomed into the walls of Camelot and would be arriving in a few days time, Esme and I would go and greet them so my wife could meet her family again. She was really looking forward to that. And the west side of the kingdom had changed, the knights had built new and better houses and they were well supplied with food, clothes and water and wine.

Esme and I had married a year after my fathers blessing. We had taken our relationship slowly and I had proposed to her exactly one year after the day we had met. I had taken her out on the horses into the forest for a moonlit ride, we had stopped at the river and I had asked her to marry me there and then. I had never seen her smile so much.

And now we were going to be crowned the King and Queen of Camelot. I had imagined this moment many times in my life, but I had never imagined that my Queen would be someone so beautiful and perfect and who loved me for who I was and not because I was the prince.

My crown was placed onto my head carefully. It had been my fathers crown and it fit perfectly. I watched as Esme received her crown and then the knights cheered, "Long live the King, long live the Queen!"

Esme and I sat down in the thrones and the knights also sat down and the feast began. Grace was at her sisters other side tucking into the roast lamb, she was always smiling. She had moved into the castle with her sister.

I got up and raised my glass. Silence fell on the hall and everyone looked up to watch me. "I want to make a toast to my beautiful wife and queen, my Esme. I was lost without her, I didn't know a part of me was missing until I met Esme and then I felt complete." I began. "She's perfect in every way, I never want to loose her, and we all know that she will make a great queen. So let's all raise our queen, our beloved Esme."

The knights all raised their glasses and there was the clinking sound of glasses knocking gently into one another. Esme took my hand when I sat back down and she rested her head on my shoulder. "Thank you," She said.

I kissed the top of her head gently. "I love you, so much Esme."

She sighed contently and snuggled closer to me, I wrapped one arm around her, holding her closer. "I love you too," She whispered.

* * *

I held Esme's hand tightly. "Push, Esme, you can do it!" I encouraged and she sat up and screamed as she gave another push.

"One more to go," The healer told us.

"Come on, Esme, just one more push and our baby will be here." I urged. I still couldn't believe that my wife was going to have a baby, my baby. We had been married for three years now and she had surprised me one morning over breakfast. She had bolted out of the room covering her hand with her mouth, it hadn't been the first time she had done that during that week, and I asked her if she was ill. I took her down to the healers chamber and he had told us that she hadn't caught an illness, but that she was pregnant, which had come as a surprise to both of us, but a good surprise, a happy one.

And now she was giving birth to our baby. I wished I could do it for her, she was in pain, but one more push and it would all be over.

"Your doing so well, sweetheart." I told her, kissing her temple and she sat up straight and gave another push, her whole body shaking and her eyes clenched shut. Then she let out a gasp and fell backwards, exhausted. The sound of a babies cry split the air and the healer took the baby in his arms and went to wash him off.

"Well done, dear." I said softly to my wife, running my hand through her hair. "I'm so proud of you."

"Here you go, here's your daughter." The healer told us, handing Esme the baby gently. She wrapped her arms around the little girl and rocked her back and forth in her arms.

"Hello there, my angel, I'm your mommy." She told the little girl. "And this is your father. We both love you so much."

I stroked her cheek with my finger and she clasped it in her tiny hands, giggling. Esme and I smiled and laughed softly as we stared down lovingly at our little daughter, our princess.

"We need a name for her," I said. "You pick, dear."

Esme leaned down and nuzzled the baby's nose with her own. "How about...Alice? After your mother."

I smiled. "I like that name, it suits her. Alice, little Alice. Yes,I love that name."

For the rest of the day we just stayed where we were staring down at our beautiful daughter, watching her giggle and play with our fingers and make adorable noises. I had never been this happy before in my life.


	8. Chapter 8

**Epilogue **

I watched as the man in the center of the hall crouched down, his whole form trembling, and then suddenly his skin burst everywhere and a lion was crouched in his place. The lion looked around with big amber eyes and dipped its head to me. Alice, now eight years old, walked over to it and patted it softly. Esme was comfortable with this, but she still seemed a little worried as well by the fact our daughter was with one of the worlds strongest and deadliest predators. The lion made a purring sound and nuzzled Alice's arm.

Our other daughter, Bella, or Isabella as we called her sometimes, watched from Esme's arms. She was five years old, her hair was like Esme's and she was the spitting image of her mother, with those deep brown eyes and adorable dimples that were formed whenever she laughed and giggled. Morgana was holding my youngest child, my only son Jasper, in her arms and rocking him slowly. Morgana and Edward were both knights now, whereas Rosalie was quite content with watching over my children while Esme and I were busy addressing the problems of the kingdoms.

Tonight we were holding a celebration to make the alliance between Camelot and the shape-shifters. The shape-shifters were putting on little shows, changing into their animal forms. Alice was fascinated by them and I couldn't help wonder if she would become a shape-shifter too, if any of my children would be, because they carried the genes. But if they did, there was nothing to worry about, because they would be welcomed in Camelot anyway and Esme and I would always be here for them to talk to if they wanted.

"Bella's tired," Esme noted as our little girl yawned widely. "I should take her and Jasper up to bed, it's past their bed time. Can you watch Alice for me while I'm gone? I'll be back down when I know they are fast asleep." I nodded and my wife got up and carried Bella over to Morgana, then the two of them left with Bella and Jasper in their arms.

I watched my wife leave and then my eyes went to my daughter. My family had grown so much over the past five years, I had never thought Esme and I would be so lucky to be blessed with three healthy, beautiful children. Sure being King was hard, but I would never trade their life for anything. And one day one of my children would take over the throne of Camelot and control ruling it, and then have children of their own and the Cullen dinasty would continue for decades to come. But that wasn't the thing I was concentrating on, I was just living every day to the fulliest, making the most of my time here and spending all my free time with my wife and children.

Alice rushed over to me. "Daddy! They are so amazing!" She cheered as she climbed onto my lap. Her black hair went right past her shoulders and was in a plate so she looked a lot like my sister. She and all my children had a close bond with Morgana and Rosalie, and I was thankful for my sisters for watching my children when Esme and I couldn't.

Esme returned after ten minutes, Morgana wasn't with her so I guess my sister had offered to stay behind to watch the children for her. We continued to watch the show until midnight, and then Alice started to grow tired and the celebrations came to an end. Esme took Alice up to bed while I said goodbye and thank you to all my guests. When they had all left and I had checked with Lancelot that the guards were at their posts and everything was fine, I went upstairs to mine and Esme's room.

My wife was giving Alice a kiss on the forehead and I joined her, wrapping my arm around her waist. Bella and Jasper were fast asleep and Morgana whispered goodbye to us before she went to her own room. Alice was just dropping off into a dream and my wife and I got ready for bed ourselves. I climbed under the duvets and wrapped my arms around my wife, pulling her closer to me. I breathed in her scent, still wondering how I was so lucky to have her and my three wonderful children.

"I've never thanked you Esme for this wonderful life you've given me." I whispered to her and she looked over her shoulder at me. I took that chance and gave her a kiss. "Without you, I wouldn't have Bella, Alice and Jasper, I wouldn't have this amazing life, I wouldn't have this wonderful vampire, and I wouldn't have you. I'm so glad you picked that day to go into the forest."

She smiled, humor lighting her eyes as she laughed and teased, "And I'm glad I allowed Morgana to shoot me with that arrow."

"You've made me the happiest man alive." I told her, and I had said that to her often throughout our marriage. It was true. "I cannot thank you enough."

"I love you Carlisle." She whispered as her eyes started to close and she let sleep wash over her.

I kissed her head before placing mine down on the pillow.

"I love you too Esme."

* * *

**Done! What do you think? I enjoyed writing this so much! If you haven't already, please check out my other books : Esme and Carlisle; a love that will never fade, Starlight, Dark Moon, Red Rose and Battlefield. **

**Thank you, hope you liked this story! :) xoxox**


	9. Twitter

**DISCLAIMER: I Do Not Own Twilight Or It's Characters, I Only Own This Story And The Idea For It**

* * *

Please follow me on twitter - /emily_esme

i had to make a new account cos my old one started to act up xx


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